Flying High: shaping the future of drones in UK cities
Medical delivery in London Using drones to move urgent medical deliveries between London’s hospitals •
Study explores rapid transport of light medical deliveries between hospitals
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Increased speed and reliability could cut costs and improve patient care
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We find this use case technically feasible; economic feasibility of a small-scale service would be challenging but could be compelling at larger scale
This use case focuses on a drone delivery network for carrying urgent medical products between NHS facilities, which would routinely carry products such as pathology samples, blood products and equipment over relatively short distances between hospitals in a network.
A (1) drone takes off from one hospital, (2) carries medical deliveries over a short route of up to a few miles, and (3) drops them off at another hospital. London has 34 hospitals in relatively close proximity. Deliveries between hospitals are frequent, and in many cases, time sensitive, but traffic and the lack of major roads restricts this. The key benefits to drone medical deliveries in London would be:
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